Red Poppy Ale
Beer No: 102
Page No: 918
Category: Specialty
The last of my Stone Sour Fest reviews, this is the Lost Abbey Red Poppy. It's easily one of my favorites (though their new Russ - strawberry sour - was pretty amazing as well), but the Cuvee de Tomme still ranks as my favorite Lost Abbey brew (I'll post both reviews below). One day, when I'm rolling in cash, I'll join the Lost Abbey Sinners & Saints program, but for now, I'll be content with my Bruery Reserve Society membership. Enough with Lost Abbey, on to the beers. For the final listing, here are the beers from "C" East Side of Lawn - all on draft. A * indicates I tried it - a º indicates I skipped it because I knew I had already tasted it at a previous festival.
- "C" East Side of Lawn
- Lagunitas Pinot Noir Barreled Sonoma Farmhouse Saison Style Ale
- The Lost Abbey Duck Duck Gooze *
- The Lost Abbey Framboise de Amorosa *
- The Lost Abbey Red Poppy Ale *
- The Lost Abbey Russ *
- The Lost Abbey Veritas Ale 07 *
- Moylan's Barrel Aged Kilt Lifter with Brett
- New Belgium La Folie
- New Belgium Lips of Faith Eric's Ale º
- New Belgium Lips of Faith Transatlantique Kriek º
- New Belgium Love - Felix (dry hopped) *
- New Belgium Love - Oscar (spiced) *
- New Belgium Tart Lychee *
- Ommegang Zuur *
- Russian River Consecration º
- Russian River Supplication º (tomorrow's beer)
- Six Rivers Raspberry Lambic *
- Triple Rock Sour Cherry Stout aged in Bourbon Barrels *
- Dogfish Head Festina Peche º
- Drake's FrakenBerry Sour
- Drake's Kuato
I think this quote from Lost Abbey's director of brewing, Tomme Arthur pretty much sums up my feelings on all the sour ales (my personal favorite style of beer):
"Perhaps the single most defining beer moment for me came when I experienced my first Rodenbach Grand Cru. It was a seminal moment, as I only then began to understand that beer could possess a range of flavors outside of bland and watery. The beer was ruby with brown highlights. It was at once sweet and sour, woody and dry. This beer was an epiphany for me."
I think any craft beer drinker can agree with Tomme. There's that moment when you discover that there's a whole world out there outside of the Corona, Bud Lite, and Miller High Life. There's a world full of flavor, complexity, and range. A beer can at once be "sweet and sour, woody and dry." It doesn't have to taste like nothing and only serve the purpose of getting you drunk. A good beer should be imbibed to experience a full range of flavors, and once experienced, there's no going back.
Thank you to all the visionaries out there. Those at Stone, Lost Abbey, Cascade, Russian River, AleSmith, The Bruery, Bootlegger's, and countless others whom have made my life better through drink. Keep up the good work, maybe one day I will work beside you.
My review, cross-posted at RateBeer.com:
Lost Abbey Red Poppy Ale by Port Brewing / Lost Abbey
Aroma: 8/10
Appearance: 4/5
Taste: 8/10
Palate: 4/5
Overall: 16/20
Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
Had on tap at Stone Sour Fest 2010. Easily one of my favorite Lost Abbey beers. The Red Poppy pours with a deep brownish-red color and slight tan head. Aroma of cherries, oak, lactic acid, vinegar, and citrus. Taste is equally complex with the cherries being the dominant flavor with the citrus and acids backing it up. Well balanced, finishes nicely, a true gem from Lost Abbey.
Pizza Port Cuvee de Tomme by Port Brewing / Lost Abbey
Aroma: 8/10
Appearance: 5/5
Taste: 9/10
Palate: 4/5
Overall: 16/20
Rating: 4.2 / 5.0
Had on draught at The 12 Hour Belgian Beer Party at Pizza Port Carlsbad on March 8, 2003 #34 on the program and #100 for me!!!
The beer has a very pleasing aroma - a slight wine smell laced with cherries. It's a bit tart, but wow, it's extremely flavorful. The beer has a beautiful appearance with no head and a clear, dark red hue. The beer is sweet, slightly acidic with a very complex, flavorful density. I had actually left the Beer Fest for dinner, but upon reviewing my program, saw I missed this highly recommended beer. I went back, bought another ticket and enjoyed this very fine beer. An absolutely wonderful beer.
